mettevsmettesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: mette is a verb, mettes is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“mette” is a verb and “mettes” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,111
“mette” frequency rank
#34,626
“mettes” frequency rank
40737
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mette mettes
Definition Première personne du singulier du présent du subjonctif de mettre. Pluriel de mette.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mette and mettes apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
mette
6 ch
mettes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Say them out loud and nothing separates them: mette and mettes carry the same recorded pronunciation, \mɛt\. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is averb, the other anoun, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “mette” sits inside “mettes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40737, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mette is recorded at frequency rank #6,111, classified as averb, pronounced \mɛt\. mettes is at rank #34,626, tagged as anoun, pronounced \mɛt\.

Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.

With a confusion score of 40737, this pair ranks #238,261 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of mette vs mettes

Shared letters: emt. Private to "mette": -. Private to "mettes": s.

"mette" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "mettes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • metteemtte · mete · metet · mmette · mtete
  • mettesemttes · metes · metets · mettess · mettse · mmettes · mtetes

Frequency comparison

mette#6,111
mettes#34,626

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mette" and "mettes" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "mette" is a verb and "mettes" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "mette" or "mettes"?
"mette" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,111 in our French list, against #34,626 for "mettes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mette vs mettes

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “mette”; for a noun, it's “mettes”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mette” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list